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Digitized by the Internet Archive 
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The Library of Congress 



http://www.archive.org/details/vigiliaeOOcrou 



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BY /-- 

M." ELIZABETH GROUSE 






G. p. PUTNAM'S SONS 

NEW YORK LONDON 

27 West Twenty-third Street 24 Bedford Street, Strand 

Ufoe Iknicfecrbocftet prcgs 
1897 



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T^ 3 JUT 

my 



Copyright, 1896 

BY 

M. ELIZABETH GROUSE 
Entered at Stationers' Hall, London 



%H tKnCcftcr^ocfter prees, Bevp ISock 



TO MY LITTLE MOTHER NAN. 



Contents, 

PAGE 

Spray . . i 

The Harp 3 

A Dewdrop 5 

A Violet ,7 

At Anchor 9 

Irrigation ii 

Comrades .13 

Kindred ....... 15 

Saved and Lost 17 

Comparison 19 

Blind Love! 21 

The Blossom 23 

The Strength of Weakness ... 25 

Impulse 25 

Space . . . . . . . .25 

Weak? . 27 

Statistics 29 

A Day 31 

Forgiveness 33 

The Vigil 35 

"As THE Mountains Are" ... 37 

The Triumph 39 

V 



Conteiita* 


vii 

PAGE 




Finite and Infinite . ... . .41 


The Bridge 








43 


Light .... 








45 


Sure .... 








47 


The Smile . 








49 


The Baby . 








51 


Dawn .... 








53 


Maidenhood 








55 


Motherhood 








57 


Widowhood 








59 


Eyes .... 








61 


An Antique Love-Story 








63 


God's Acre . 








71 


The Litany 








73 


June .... 








75 


The Burden-Bearer . 








77 


A Child's Question . 








79 


Spring Memories 








81 


A Forget-me-not 








83 


The Lunar Moth 








85 


Stars .... 








87 


The Unattainable . 








89 


Night .... 








91 


The North Star 


» 




. 93 


The Last Forget-me-not 








97 



nPHESE are spray from the ocean of 
Thought, 

That surgeth between the shore 
Of Sleep and the harbor of Death — 

For Life is Thought evermore. 



OTRUNG to the highest tension was my 
harp — 
I held my breath. 
Sure but for one were notes prepared so 
sharp, 
For Sorrow, twin of Death. 

But soft and low, like sound of angel's 
wings, 

The music came ; 
In harmony the player eased the strings, 

Joy was his name. 



H 2)ewC)rop* 

/^~\F heaven thou art, from heaven thou 
earnest, distilled 

Into earth's night. 
Invisible until enfolded, filled 

With heaven's light. 
Then thou returnest to heaven as we gaze, 

Yet none may see. 
Such is the story of our life, our days. 

For such are we. 



H IDiolet. 

T LOST a little thought last night, 

That once had given me keen delight, 

And thro' the hours I sought : 
Till, weary in the morning bright, 
I strolled upon the hill, and quite 
Hid in a mass of leaves from sight, 

Behold, I found my little thought. 



Ht Hncbor* 

QUNRISE and God's fresh day, 

The dew on all the grass ; 
And in the harbor ships that nestling lay, 
Unfurl their sails and pass. 

Sunrise and God's fresh day, 
Life's craft the waters spurn ; 

And may the vessels never go astray 
But home to God return. 

Sunset and God's tired day 
Seeks heaven thro' the west — 

And in the harbor ships that sped away, 
Now furl their sails and rest. 



irrigation* 

"I Tl 7 EE, mischievous thunderheads 
peeped o'er the mountain, 
To look at a little town, 
Then rolling and grumbling, and clapping 
and tumbUng, 
They laughed till the tears ran down. 



II 



"[7 ROM the receding sky a tear 

at night was dropt in dew 
Upon a flower, that cried, '' I 'm here, — 

do not forget, — I 'm blue 
Because you leave me and because I 'm 

always true." 



13 



QORROW 's to joy a kindred thing, 
Sunrise and sunset are the same, 
And autumn 's but another name 
For memory and hope of spring. 



15 



Save& anb %05t 

\/0U beg a written thought — 

Press me the flower I brought ; 
Long thro' the years 't will last, 
Yet all its life be past. 



17 



Comparison* 

T^HERE 's naught exists a single one, 

Nor joy nor grief hath life, 
Save touched by some comparison 
To harmony or strife. 



19 



3BUnD Xove ! 

T OVE is near-sighted, not blind ; 
He sees all the beauty in one, 
The distant remainder to find 
By comparison, poor and undone. 



21 



XCbe Blossom^ 

T^HE roots dig down in the earth be- 
neath, 
The broad green leaves in the air unsheathe, 
All that a poor little flower may breathe, 
And bear its seed. 

And I have delved into deepest lore 
And spread my thoughts into Nature's store 
All for a little book, no more, 
A tiny flower, indeed. 



23 



Ube Streufltb ot TPQleaftnesB* 

OW often do the clinging hands, tho' 



weak, 



Clasp round strong hearts that otherwise 
would break. 

Impulse* 

"/^NLY an Impulse ! '' yet at need 
It was crystallized to deed. 



O' 



Space* 

^NE influence makes the sky and 
mountain blue — 
" 'T is distance lends enchantment to the 
view.'' 

25 



T 



Meaft? 



IGHT and unsteady, weak, — did you 



say? 



That touch on her hair, that kiss ? 
Ah, the power is stronger that lifts away. 
Than the heaviest pressure is. 



27 



statistics* 

** OO many born, so many died to-day — " 
Thousands of angels passing up and 
down ; 
They come to us, they go to wear their 
crown, 
And keep 'twixt heaven and earth an open 
way. 



2Q 



TOEHOLD Life's history since time 

began : 
The dewy sweet creation, and the span 
Of good and evil since, of hope and fear, 
Between two glorious covers, written here. 



31 



fovQivcncss. 

/^ FATHER, when I know 

Thy sweet forgiveness, *t is my heav- 
iest load. 
For even as I go. 

The knowledge of the distance of the road, 
From me to Thee, the difference that Thou 

showed 
Between us, this is woe 
Too hard to carry, save that thus for Thee 
Thy heaviest freighted servant I may be. 



33 



T^HE wind about the casement moans in 
pain, 

In fear the lonely candle shrinks again ; 

The moths, outside the blind which makes 
their night, 

Are thoughts which beat and burn them- 
selves for light. 



35 



as tbe iTOottntafns are." 

HE mountains in the night are like a 



T 

dream, 



Hidden in mist, lest they too stern should 

seem 
To darkened eyes ; and more protection so, 
For he who doubts their presence is some 

foe, 
From stranger country. Thus the Lord 

doth stand, 
Forever caring for His chosen band. 



37 



o 



TLbc Uriumpb* 

GLORIOUS triumph ! Man has died 
For fellow-man, — is God denied 
His love as great to show ? 



May He not give His dearest one— 
As many a human heart hath done — 
And sound love's depth of woe ? 

Aye truly — and this Love Divine 
Hath proven more than yours or mine, 
Both pangs at once to know ! 

Who can believe in God and Sin, 
Without the atoning power to win, — 

That life from death may grow ? 

For of Sin's lowest deep of shade 

The opportunity He made 

His heights of love to show. 
39 



yinite an& f nfinite* 

"QURELY, if all are good, then all 

must be 
Alike and heaven will show monotony/* 

I said, and dreamed of light. 
Prismatic colors quivered in the air. 
Each separate, perfect in itself, and fair, — 
While round and thro' and causing all was 
there 
One great, all-blending White. 



41 



T OVE is the keystone of the arch 

That leads from earth to heaven. 
Safe over it the millions march — 
That stone cannot be riven. 



43 



%iQbt 

T^HOU one all perfect Light, 

Our lamps are lit at Thine ; 
And into darkness, as of night, 
We go, to prove they shine. 



45 



Sure* 

|S love so true ? How tell the worth 

Of fathers' smiles on childhood given ? 
By one sure way, the best on earth 

We learn by what we dream of heaven. 



47 



Zbc Smile* 

TO D. B. C. 

T Tl 7E feel a sunshine in the place, 
^ ' And wonder what it may be. 

'T is warmth and tenderness and grace, 
God's smile on us — the baby. 



49 



XCbe Bab^* 

A LITTLE hard green bud thy state- 
What color wilt thou be ? 
We guess thy parent stalk, yet wait 
Thine unclosed heart to see. 



51 



2)awn. 

TV Tow has returned our Sun so bold 

And calls the roll on our little sphere. 
Trees rustle out, each leaf turns gold, 
As one at a time each cries, " I 'm here." 



53 



fl^ai^enboo^♦ 

QWEET and cold as yonder dale, 
Clothed in mists of purity, 
Where a crystal river floweth free, — 
Thou sleepest with thy dreams of me, 

*' Ere I," quoth Love, " thy sun, prevail.' 



55 



/iDotberbood. 

O UCH bended dignity a mother hath ! 
To heaven's gate alone she trod the 
path, 
And brought her child from thence. How 

low her head — 
For baby hands its benedictions shed. 



57 



N TOW is she crowned with perfectness at 

^ ^ last. 

She bends her head no more — the soul hath 

passed 
That is apart of hers. Still in earth's strife 
She labors, knowing that heaven hath her 

life. 



59 



"TNEEP in a woman's eyes, 

More than the laughter lies : — 
The prisoned thought of generations past 
Thro' these unconscious windows pleads at 
last. 



6i 



Bn Hntique %ovc^Stov>s* 

I. 

IN the spring-time, just at even, 

When the dial was marking seven, 

Came a young man down the garden walk 

to choose his lady's flower ; 

Side by side he found them growing, 

And the queenly rose-bud throwing 

Quite a shadow o'er the violet, according to 

the hour. 

II. 

For the youth admired her greatly, 

In that she was tall and stately, 
63 



an antique %ovc»Stot^ 



And she wore the evening's colors, so warm 
and rich and sweet. 
" You can have no place beside her, 
In what happiness betide her " 
Thus he scorned the modest violet that 
nestled at her feet. 



III. 



But the violet was so tiny, 

So short, and so sunshiny, 
She could n*t help her looking up, e'en thro' 
a misty tear. 

And the world was changed to sweetness^ 

For she saw it in completeness. 

Saw it thro* a rainbow promise, made just 

big enough for her. 
65 



an antique Xove^Stors 



IV. 

She had learned the glorifying 
Of the tears and of the sighing ; 
Hope is made of lifted troubles raised to 
let God's sunshine thro'. 
Tho' the rose was queen of even, 
Gazed she in the clear blue heaven, 
And unconsciously became herself that 
color pure and true. 



Life grew better for her teaching, 
For her fragrance, softly reaching ; 
That she lived above the earth, and tho' so 

little, did her best. 

67 



an antique Xove^Stocs 



While the rose-bud, slowly losing, 
Died the death of that quick choosing, 
The violet blossomed on thro' all the 
spring-time, ever blest. 



6g 



(5o&'s Here* 

i^^ OD'S Acre ! yea, God is the sun 
^■^^ That quickens here the grain. 
It knows not death's oblivion ; 
We sing " Auf wiedersehen." 



71 



Ube Xitans* 

'' TX THERE it listeth, the wind blow- 

eth." 
So as o'er a wheatfield goeth, 
Sweeping with a soft low sound, 
Bowing all heads toward the ground, 
O'er the congregation there, 
Spirit born, this voice of prayer, 
*^ Bending from thy throne on high, 
Hear our solemn litany/' 



73 



June. 

T^HE days have reached meridian of 
length, 

It is the year's high noon ; 
All Nature, in the excess of her strength, 

Seems, for an hour, to swoon. 



75 



TLbc 3Bttrben*Bearer. 

ORD, none who are strong because 



care-free, 



Will carry a weight for another : 
But one who 's enduring and suffering for 
Thee, 
Has strength for himself and his brother. 



77 



H ChiWs (Sincstion. 

THUMPS in the sky, dear? yes, one 
naughty cloud 
Has hit another. 
See how their eyes flash — hear the scolding 
loud — 
TAaf was his brother. 



79 



Sprfna /SDertiorles* 

TV TEW things remind us of the old, 
For oldest things were newest ; 
And Memory, a friend may be 
At once first, last, and truest. 



8f 



A 



a fovQcUmc^nou 

TINY dewdrop held the wide blue 
skies 
In its embrace : 
By love transfigured, it did crystallize 
To starlike grace. 

The lowly heaven incarnate in it there, 

So great, so small, 
Makes ever to the downcast eyes the 
prayer, 

'' Look over all." 



83 



Zbc Xunar /IDotb* 

T NTO the night 
He strayed, a floating fragment of the light : 
He caught and cast in shade the candle- 
rays, 

That crossed his ways. 

Into death's fastness, 
A tiny flying atom of life's vastness, 
He has gone out — the tale of all our 
sighing, 

All life, all dying. 



85 



A' 



Stars^ 

DOWN the face of Evening tears of 

dew 

Stood, for departing Day ; 
Whereat she turned her face from far 

away — 
So bright, the drops each caught a 
tender ray. 
And till she came again they held it true. 



87 



Zbc xanattafnable* 

INFINITE Beauty ! thou art 
In the Infinite Heart. 
That which musicians seek, 
That which the poets speak, 
Are but a glimpse below — 
Now but " in part " we know. 



89 



T O ! the black ship of the Night, 

Glowing radiantly bright, 
All her lamps and portholes gleaming, 
And her search-light o'er us streaming- 
Laden with a priceless Rest, 
Passes noiseless, to the west. 



91 



H 



Ube IRortb Star* 

TO A. B. C. 

IGH in the heaven above God holds 



thee, 

My fair North Star. 
There, where my darkness of distance 

enfolds thee. 
Shining afar. 

God knows I had sunshine, — 't was when 

thou wert nearer ; 
Blinded by thee 
I was lost ; in the night-time the way has 

grown clearer 

Over the sea. 

93 



XTbe Bortb Stat 



I follow to port, my own lantern still 
burning. 
Lead all the way 
To where thou and I with the flames of 
our yearning 
Shall melt in Day. 



95 



Zbc Xast fovQcUmc^not. 

A BASHED I stand before thee in the 

place 

I leave—no sweetest word I dare to mar 

Of this, our perfect trust, the perfect grace. 

Yet all I Ve spoken lies in this one 

flower. 

A tear like mine that gazed in heaven's 

face 

And straight became a star : — 

A word like mine ; a dew 

Dark Evening wept, — there shone bright 

heaven the best, 

And crystallized, a tone of color true, 
97 



Zbc Xa6t fforaets=mes=not 



With mission highest, because lowliest, 
Always to breathe its love in clearest 

hue, 
To find, in being a heaven, heavenly rest ; — 
A still, small voice of infinite Silence, Love 
That yearns, a folding space, our hearts 

above. 



99 



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